Let the latest sports debate commence.

Who is on a franchise’s Mount Rushmore? Who is the best player we’ve ever seen? Or the best game? List after list after list. Well, here’s one more: The best uniform numbers in Dallas sports history.

We think we’ve given it a different twist. Hey, there’s no doubt that Roger Staubach wore No. 12 better than any other Cowboy and that no No. 12 who walked, dribbled or skated through town has a better résumé than Captain America. That’s the easy part. Where we decided to veer off course a little: We took the numbers as a whole.

If you took all the No. 12s to come through town, do they stack up against all the No. 34s (Nolan Ryan says hello) or the 88s (name a great Cowboys receiver; he probably wore it). We put that question to our staff, asking them to rank their 10 best uniform/sweater numbers across the Dallas pro sports landscape.

We coaxed responses from the staff and nobody even said: “This is such a waste of time!” The voting process was 10 points for a first-place vote descending down to one point for a 10th- place vote.

Hopefully, what follows provides fodder for your next week’s worth of sports debate.

No number in DFW sports has been so honored across as many sports. Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher, and Bob Hayes, an Olympian, are both in the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor. Blackman’s number is one of four retired by the Mavericks. The two most notable Rangers to wear it — Will Clark and Steve Buechele — make for a pretty slick corner infield and leadership combo. And though Brett Hull spent most of his career in Dallas wearing No. 16, he wore 22 in 1998-1999, the year he scored the winning goal in the Stars’ only Stanley Cup championship.

Fun fact: While the Cowboys don’t officially retire numbers, nobody has worn 22 since Smith last played in Dallas in 2002. In case you were wondering, the guys to wear it between Hayes and Smith: CB Wade Manning, RB George Peoples and CB Victor Scott.

2. No. 12

There may be no number more identifiable with a singular Dallas athlete than Roger Staubach and No. 12. Having Captain America on your résumé is credibility on its own. But the Mavs also retired this number for Derek Harper. Highland Park’s Kyle Rote Jr., who wore it for the Dallas Tornado, was the only U.S.-born player to lead the NASL (MLS’ forerunner) in scoring. Soriano, acquired for Alex Rodriguez, donned it for a 30-30 season and two All-Star berths. And Rougned Odor looked dazzling in it while decking Jose Bautista.

Fun fact: No. 12 should also be part of a no-hitter. Geno Petralli wore it from 1985-93 with the Rangers, longer than any other player. But on June 11, 1990, a sore neck forced him to the bench. It led to recently signed John Russell catching Nolan Ryan for the first time. Ryan then struck out 14 in no-hitting Oakland 5-0. Russell, alas, was wearing 17.

3. No. 41

Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) shoots a layup in between Houston Rockets guard Corey Brewer (33) and Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) during the first half of game 4 of the first round of the NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Sunday, April 26, 2015. (Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News)(Vernon Bryant / Staff Photographer)

Charlie Waters and Terence Newman gave the Cowboys 18 solid years of defensive back play, but this is the first number on the list that isn’t Cowboy-centric. Let’s face it, this is all about Dirk. No athlete has worn one number in this town longer nor done it with as much excellence and grace as Nowitzki did 41. Kevin Brown won 21 games for the Rangers and started the All-Star Game and Brent Gilchrist was an original Dallas Star, but they all pale in comparison to Dirk.

Fun fact: Sam Perkins, drafted between Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley in the 1984 draft, wore 41 for two seasons. It was the same number he wore while teammates with Jordan and James Worthy at North Carolina. Perkins switched to 44 for the 1986-87 season.

4. No. 9

Dallas Stars' Mike Modano hoists the Stanley Cup over his head during a ceremony at Reunion Arena after the Stars victory parade in downtown Dallas on Monday.(Andy Scott)

Start with the greatest U.S.-born hockey player ever and the only player to wear No. 9 on the ice in Dallas: Mike Modano. Add in Tony Romo, the quarterback who threw more touchdowns than anyone else for the Cowboys and a certain future Ring of Honor member. Throw in the local soccer legend, Tatu. And just for good measure, the greatest Mexico-born soccer star of all-time, Hugo Sanchez, made a one-season cameo for the Dallas Burn. Lotta local legends. And we didn’t even talk baseball.

Fun fact: The Mavs don’t really make much of a contribution with this number, but they once did trade a 9 for a 9. In 2015, they sent Jae Crowder, who probably wore it best for the Mavs, to Boston in the deal that brought Rajon Rondo to the Mavs. Well, based on the way that half season played out, maybe it’s better off if we didn’t even mention it.

5. No. 34

May 1, 1991--As the crowd goes wild in the stands behind him, Texas Rangers pitcher Nolan Ryan strides off the mound after striking out Roberto Alomar of the Toronto Blue Jays for the final out in the ninth inning, earningÂ his seventh career no-hitter with a 3-0 win at Arlington Stadium. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Times Herald)

Who wore it best: Nolan Ryan

Who else wore it well: Cornell Green, Herschel Walker, Devin Harris

Nolan Ryan might have single-handedly saved the Rangers franchise, giving the team legitimacy after arriving in 1989, adding excitement with his 5,000th strikeout and then becoming an age-defying phenomenon by tossing a pair of no-hitters after the age of 40. Go to a Rangers game now (or whenever they play again), nearly 30 years after he retired, and you are still likely to see as many Ryan jerseys as any other at the stadium. We haven’t even gotten to the Cowboys, who had a borderline Hall of Famer in Green, a guy who never played college football, and, in Walker, the trade chip that opened the path to the 1990s dominance.

Fun fact: Reliever Dale Mohorcic was the primary caretaker of 34 in Arlington in the three years before Ryan arrived. His claim to fame? He tied the MLB record for most consecutive games pitched with 13 in his rookie season of 1986. The Horse was never the same.

6. No. 88

Michael Irvin celebrates after gaining 30 yards on a pass from Jason Garrett in the third quarter of a Sept. 21, 1998 game against the New York Giants at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.(Associated Press)

Who wore it best: Michael Irvin

Who else wore it well: Drew Pearson, Dez Bryant

As our Kevin Sherrington notes: “It’s the most Cowboys number ever.” There’s some, um, personality to this number. But there’s also a whole lot of greatness. Irvin, Bryant and Pearson rank 2-3-4 all-time in Cowboys receptions. Just for posterity’s sake, that’s 1,770 catches, 27,185 yards and 186 touchdowns between them. It doesn’t even matter that no other franchise in town contributed a worthwhile 88 to the list. The Mavs have never had one. The Rangers got 69 forgettable total games between Kyle Blanks (2015) and Rene Gonzales (1996).

Fun fact: The Stars had an 88 and he was pretty great, just not in Dallas. Who can forget that Eric Lindros finished off his Hall of Fame career with 49 games for the Stars in 2005-06? Actually, probably a lot of people.

7. No. 21

FILE - Cowboys cornerback Deion Sanders (21) celebrates on his way to the end zone after recovering a fumble during a game against the Colts on Sunday, Sept. 15, 1996, at Texas Stadium in Irving.(Louis Deluca - staff photog. / 95243)

With the electric Sanders, the enigmatic Sierra and the three-time Selke Award winner Carbonneau, this bunch might lay claim to the most eclectic group on the list. Sierra began his Rangers career as No. 47, then was switched to No. 3 in 1987. But Sierra grew up idolizing the most famous 21 ever, Roberto Clemente, and he played with Roberto Clemente Jr. as a youth in Puerto Rico. The number is revered there. So, Sierra persuaded another childhood friend and Puerto Rican, Edwin Correa, to give him 21. The deal didn’t work out well for Correa, who took over 53. He hurt his arm later in the 1987 season and never pitched in the majors again.

Fun fact: It has been issued to more players (39) than any other number in Rangers/Senators history, but it has often been the home of the wayward outfielder, from Sierra to Milton Bradley to Sammy Sosa and uber-prospect Ruben Mateo. But Mike Hargrove won an AL Rookie of the Year award while wearing it in 1974.

8. No. 7

Texas Rangers catcher Ivan Rodriguez shows off his bicep from second base after hitting a double in the first inning of the exhibition game Monday afternoon between the Rangers and the Kansas City Royals at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, NY. (Louis DeLuca/Staff Photographer)

Who wore it best: Ivan Rodriguez

Who else wore it well: Neal Broten, Dwight Powell, David Murphy

Pudge is the lone Hall of Famer the Rangers have developed, but his No. 7 is the only one of the Rangers’ five retired uniform numbers that saw action after he left Texas. In fact, after Rodriguez left following the 2002 season, it was unused for only a season before going to a procession of Eric Young, Mark DeRosa and then Murphy. When the Rangers re-acquired Rodriguez in 2009, Murphy gave up the number for Pudge. But the next year, 7 was back with Murphy. Delino DeShields was wearing it in 2015 but chose to give it up to honor Rodriguez. The Rangers retired No. 7 in 2017.

Fun fact: It is the official number of Cowboys backup quarterbacks. Listen to this list: Steve Beuerlein, Hugh Millen, Randall Cunningham, Chad Hutchinson, Drew Henson, Stephen McGee and current backup Cooper Rush. Does that mean 2020 seventh-rounder Ben DiNucci is fated to eventually wear the number, too?

9. No. 20

Mel Renfro.(FILE)

Who wore it best: Mel Renfro

Who else wore it well: Ed Belfour, Jeff Burroughs, Ron Springs

Let’s put it this way: Renfro played on the same teams as Olympian Bob Hayes and might still have been the better athlete. Tom Landry moved Renfro, a track star and running back at Oregon, to defense where he carved out a Hall of Fame career as a cornerback and safety. He played his entire career in Dallas, was a seven-time All-Pro, a two-time Super Bowl winner and the fifth player inducted into the Ring of Honor. That beats out a Stanley Cup-winning goaltender in Belfour and an AL MVP in Burroughs.

Fun fact: Jamie Langenbrunner, one of 28 U.S.-born hockey players to play 1,000 games and total 600 points, started his career with the Stars as a 19-year-old as No. 20, appearing in two games in 1995. When he came back up the next season, he wore 16 for 12 games. He finally ended up at No. 15, which he wore while winning Stanley Cups with Dallas and New Jersey.

10. No. 10

Michael Young #10 of the Texas Rangers hits an RBI single scoring Josh Hamilton #32 against the Oakland Athletics in the third inning during an MLB baseball game at O.co Coliseum on September 20, 2011 in Oakland, California.

Who wore it best: Michael Young

Who else wore it well: Jim Sundberg, Brenden Morrow, Mauro Diaz

The steadiest number in Rangers history. There have been five players in team history to play at least 1,500 games for the Rangers and two of them — Young and Sundberg — are repped by No. 10. Sundberg won six Gold Gloves behind the plate; Young won a batting title and an All-Star Game MVP. When the Rangers retired Young’s jersey in 2019, he made sure to mention Sundberg’s excellence with the club. On the topic of steady, between 1999 and 2013, Young (1,823) and Morrow (835) combined for more than 2,500 games representing Dallas-area teams.

Fun fact: Punter Ron Widby was issued No. 12 in 1968 but switched to 10 for Staubach the next year. The switch worked out OK for him, too. He was an All-Pro in 1969 and a Pro Bowler in 1971.

Contact

Evan Grant, Rangers beat writer/insider. Evan has covered the Rangers since 1997. He has twice been named one of the top 10 beat writers in the country by the AP Sports Editors. His passions outside of covering baseball are his wife, Gina, his two step kids, two crazy dogs & barbecue. Let's not discuss the cat. Evan graduated from Georgia State University, but oddly is a Georgia fan.